CD Reviews

A Treasure Trove

Randy S. | Las Vegas, Nevada, USA | 06/09/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is a wonderful Lightfoot album, different in that some songs have a clear David Foster influence. My favourites are those that are just Gordon, in particular "Morning Glory" and "A Passing Ship," although there are no songs that I skip over. Some of the songs, such as "A Lesson in Love," it's hard to know what he's singing about, with lyrics like "First to come are the midgets, a monkey and a kid, followed by those two one-eyed jugglers, the ego and the id." Huh? But the songs are so smooth, it doesn't matter. You will notice that Gordon's voice is a little thinner than the more rich sound on "Salute" only three years earlier, but it is a real pleasure to listen to the entire album. Gordon will say that now he has difficulty reaching the higher notes on the song "East of Midnight" without some rearrangement, so certainly after this album his voice has lost some range. But, I own his last two recordings, from 1993 and 1998, and they too are a pleasure to listen to. Gordon put a lot of work into "East of Midnight," and it shows. It is meticulously well-crafted and he certainly maintains the standard of excellence of his other recordings. Turn out the lights and enjoy!"

A different but excellent Gordon Lightfoot

Randy S. | 12/18/1998

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Like many others I have been a fan of Gordon Lightfoot and his highly entertaining music since his first album. The fact that he writes the music AND performs it both vocally and instrumentally has elicited my respect as well as great pleasure.I purchased this CD when it was published back in the early 80's, listened to it just a little and decided I didn't like it. It was quite different from what I had come to enjoy about Gord's music and I suppose that was why it just didn't seem to click for me. Some years later, though, I dusted off the CD and listened again. At first it was just one tune that caught my ear, then others followed. As I listened more I found that the songs were wonderfully melodic with catchy syncopation, and, typical of Lightfoot, the lyrics were meaningful. I found myself walking around with these "new" songs playing in my mind for hours on end. The more I listened the better the tunes seemed to get Most of the tracks on this album have their own specialness that shows up only after "getting to know them" a bit more. Gordon has hidden gems in each tune. As you become familiar with the songs on this CD you start to feel he cut and polished them just for you.If you enjoy Gordon Lightfoot at all I strongly suggest you purchase this CD. You might feel, as I do (though belatedly), that this just might be his best album."

"A Lesson in ...Music?"

TERRY UPP | USA | 06/24/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"A thoroughly excellent Lightfoot package that I would have given a three star rating to if not for the great "A Lesson In Love". It's a hidden gem that I discovered for the first time when I bought his boxed set in 1999. In fact, that song's what made me purchase East of Midnight in search of more songs of that quality. Alas, there are none on this CD, however, most of the rest of the songs are quite good in their own right."

A different side of Gord

Brian Kelly | Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario Canada | 04/09/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Imagine my surprise... not one song from this 1986 effort was included on Gord's Gold Volume II. There's several gems here. My favourites include I'll Tag Along and Morning Glory. Long-time Lightfoot fans might be a bit put off by the added production work (witness David Foster's hand on Anything for Love), but give the pride of Orillia, Ontario credit for trying something different. But Ecstasy Made Easy has to be one of the worst songs I've ever heard Gord do. Still there's plenty to enjoy here. Fans would have to wait another seven years before Gord released his next album of new material, Restless, in 1993."

Man that is good

Sam Somerhalder | Burlington, KS United States | 12/07/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I actually dont have this cd, but instead his box set which several of the songs are on. And those songs alone are enough to buy this album which I plan on doing soon enough. I would rank the song "East of Midnight" as my second favorite Lightfoot song right behind "Song for Winters Night" so either through the box set or this cd, I suggest getting a recording of that song. I also love the song A Passing Ship, which is just vintage Gordon. And Morning Glory is a song that I listen to over and over again, even though it didnt make my top twenty Lightfoot songs, but thats just how good he is. If you cant tell, I do consider him the greatest songwriter of all time."